On a stage mirroring the target from its Vertigo video, U2 aims high, serving monster hits with vintage rarities and a heavy dose of untested tunes from the current How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb album.

U2's new album has nothing to do with nuclear arsenals, yet its title couldn't be more fitting. Disarming and explosive, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (* * * * out of four) has the radiating energy of a reactor meltdown and the potential half-life of uranium. U2 is the new U-235, white-hot and untouchable.

Of 16 nominees up for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, U2 is the surest bet to make the class of 2005. So why is the front-runner hoping to be shoved to the back burner? "We're definitely too young," says U2 bassist Adam Clayton, 44.

Talk about critical mass. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, U2's 11th studio album and first since 2000, arrives Tuesday amid more anticipation than any release this year. The blissful and aggressive Vertigo, No. 1 at modern rock stations, is the band's hottest U.S. single to date and just knocked Eminem off the top of the U.K. chart.

Memphis has declared July 5 to be rock 'n' roll's 50th "birthday" and will celebrate it with events throughout the year. The date commemorates the moment in 1954 when Elvis Presley recorded his first single, That's All Right, at Sun Studio.